Inner Demons
by YugiFanz13
Summary: At first glance, Yuugi is a kind boy, with a somewhat troubled past. But if that's all there is to him, what is he so afraid of? DARK! [Epilogue: Making Peace. Oh, and a note. Because the epilogue was baaaaaad...]
1. Prized Possessions

Author's Notes: This is written by Lily22. I'm sorry I didn't ask permission first, and I'm sorry I didn't get anybody else to beta this. This was just a spur of the moment thing anyways, and I'm sure nobody minds. Right?  
  
~~  
  
His mother had fallen asleep.  
  
Sighing gratefully, Yuugi leaned back in his seat, closing his eyes to the rumble and frequent bumps of the train. Hopefully, his mother wouldn't wake up for a few minutes, and he'd get some rest. But with his eyes closed, each bump was magnified, and no sooner had he started to relax before the train lurched underneath him and his eyes snapped open.  
  
Yuugi glanced over at his mother again. Still asleep. Her strawberry-blond hair fell over her eyes and she absently shook her head to dislodge them. But at least she was still asleep.  
  
Carefully, Yuugi pulled out his prized possessions-his dueling deck and two photographs. One was of his father and mother, standing together and looking extremely happy. His father had been fifteen years older than his mother, but they had been in love-or so they thought. But being pregnant with Yuugi had changed his mother's opinion, and soon, she had divorced Yuugi's father.  
  
Staring down at his father, Yuugi couldn't see much of a resemblance. His father's black hair and his mother's red-blond hair had somehow mixed together, then separated to form Yuugi's own, unique hair, but besides that, his father hadn't given Yuugi any characteristics. From his mother, he had gotten his height (or lack thereof). If Yuugi thought of this like a puzzle, which he usually did, it was missing a couple of pieces. But he had figured that out too.  
  
His father, a few days before death, had give to Yuugi a picture of his father. "This is your grandfather, my father. You'll go to live with him when I'm gone. But your mother will have to take you there."  
  
The last pieces of the puzzle, that curious hairstyle and those violet eyes, had been from Yuugi's grandfather. From what he could see, Sugoroku Mutoh was a kindly old man, but how could he help being nervous going to live with him?  
  
But then again, anything was better than living with his mother, who hated him for ruining her life.  
  
~~  
  
"You're telling me you only have three cards??" Jou asked, laughing slightly. "Three cards isn't exactly enough for a deck, Anzu."  
  
"Ha ha ha, Jounouchi, but if you'll remember, I didn't exactly have money to spare, buying cards."  
  
"Ah, yes. And if _you'll_ remember, I gave ya those cards, so you should be thanking me!"  
  
Anzu rolled her eyes. "Enough, enough! I have money now, so why don't we go to that store you were telling me about?"  
  
"Yeah. It's called the Kame game shop. It's right around he....." Jou stopped speaking very silently, and they both stopped walking.  
  
They were about two houses away from the store, and they had gotten there just in time to see a woman and a boy (his son? But the woman seemed a bit too young to be having children...) at the door. The woman snarled something and, wrenching the boy's arm, shoved him into the store. An elderly man with graying hair stood inside, smiling, but at the boy's yelp, the smile dropped off his face, and his purple eyes went cold.  
  
The woman left quickly, almost tripping on her high-heels. "What're you brats looking at?" She snapped upon passing, and rounded the corner.  
  
"Er... Jou, maybe we should come back later..." Anzu muttered, eyes directed pointedly at man and boy heading inside.  
  
"Nonsense, Anzu! If we just waited a few seconds, I'm sure everything will have settled down," was the blithe reply. True to his word, about a minute later, Jou dragged a very reluctant Anzu into the store. Overhead, a bell tinkled pleasantly, alerting the owner of their entrance.  
  
"One moment!" The owner shouted from a back room with a grunt. "Just have to move a few boxes!"  
  
"Anou... Jiisan, if you're busy, I could help them," a boyish voice said, also from the back room.  
  
"You?" There was a few moments' pause, in which the owner seemed to be considering. "Well, okay. If you have any problems, just call for me!"  
  
"I will!" The boy they had seen earlier came into the front room, smiling cheerfully. "Welcome to the Kame game shop," he announced, as if he'd rehearsed it, though from the way he seemed unsure of his surroundings, he had never been here before. "My name is Yuugi. How may I help you?"  
  
"Yuugi, huh? My name's Jounouchi, and this is Anzu," Jou butted in, before Anzu could tell Yuugi what they wanted. "We're looking for duel monster cards." "Duel monster cards! Great!" Yuugi looked even happier. "Do a lot of people play around here?"  
  
"Not really, only me an' Anzu. And maybe a handful of other people."  
  
"Oh, cool. I don't remember really anybody playing back where I come from." Yuugi paused, and then, "So, what kind of cards are you looking for?"  
  
"Butt-kicking monsters!"  
  
Anzu elbowed Jounouchi. "Actually, I'm the one looking for cards. I only have three at the moment, wanna see?" She pulled the cards out of her pocket, and handed them over.  
  
"Magician of Faith, Elf's Light, Shining Friendship," Yuugi read aloud. "Hey, that's good! You've got all light monsters! You could build a light- based deck. Soul of Purity and Light is great for a light deck... Oh, but what kind of cards are you looking for?"  
  
"Umm..."  
  
"Anzu doesn't know anything about the cards," Jou announced. "She's just looking for cute ones."  
  
"Hey!" Anzu shot her friend a severe look that got him to look at least a bit abashed.  
  
"Well, that is... at least she knows more than Honda!" Jou amended, then muttered, "not that that's saying much."  
  
Yuugi's laugh was like the tinkling of the bell, and for a moment, Jou almost reflexively looked up at it. "Cute cards, hm? I have... Petite Dragon in my deck, I dunno if you'll think it's cute." He took the deck from his pocket, and began thumbing through.  
  
"Hey, wait! You duel, Yuugi?" Jou exclaimed, putting a hand to his pocket.  
  
Purple eyes fixed on Jou momentarily and Yuugi stopped looking for a moment. "Well, yeah."  
  
"I'll duel ya!"  
  
"Er, I thought we were looking for cards for Anzu-san?" Yuugi glanced over at said girl, who opened her mouth to respond.  
  
"That's okay, she doesn't mind waiting!"  
  
"Jou! Stop speaking for me!"  
  
Jou merely grinned, patting her roughly on the back. "What do you say, Yuugi?"  
  
Yuugi blinked. "I... don't see why not."  
  
"Great! Er, what do you say we stake a card on this duel? The winner gets both cards?"  
  
"A... card?"  
  
"Oh no, Jou... Don't..."  
  
"Oh come on, Anzu! If he's good, he won't lose his card!" Jou turned back to Yuugi. "How about we each put down a dragon card?"  
  
"Anou... Are you sure? I'm... I don't mean to brag, but I'm pretty good..."  
  
"You're not chicken, are you?"  
  
"But.."  
  
"Come on! I don't care how good you are, let's duel!"  
  
"Well... okay, then..." Yuugi led the two over to the side, where an empty desk sat with four chairs around it. He sat down, Jou sat across from him, and Anzu chose a seat to the side.  
  
Grinning like a cat that's just eaten the canary, Jou took out a card and placed it face down. Anzu groaned at that, but said nothing. Yuugi looked unsure of himself, but followed Jou's lead and also put down a card.  
  
They shuffled each other's decks, and each put their respective decks at their right hand side. Yuugi quickly jumped up to grab paper and a pencil. Neatly, at the top, he wrote "Jou" and "Yuugi", and put a line down the middle to divide columns.  
  
"How many life points?" Yuugi asked, pencil poised.  
  
"4000."  
  
Yuugi nodded. "Tribute?"  
  
"...Nah. Only if it says you hafta on the card."  
  
Yuugi nodded again, wrote "4000" under each of their names, and handed pencil and paper to Anzu. "Would you keep score for us?"  
  
~~  
  
Not long after, Jou was ahead with 2300 life points, while Yuugi only had 850. Jou, gleefully destroying Yuugi's monsters with the Flame Swordsman, also had a face down card in the magic/trap card area. Yuugi had one face down monster on the field.  
  
"I flip summon the Man-Eater Bug."  
  
"Oh SHOOT! My Flame Swordsman!"  
  
"And I play this magic card, Premature Burial, which leaves me with only 50 life points. I revive... the Summoned Skull." Yuugi put said card on the field. "And now, I attack."  
  
"Shoot!" Jou groaned, leaning back. "I just lost!"  
  
"You... did?" Yuugi looked surprised. "But what was that face down card?"  
  
"That? That was a bluff. It was the Hamburger Recipe, a ritual card. I didn't have the Hungry Hamburger card in my hand, though."  
  
"Oh really? I'm sorry, I thought it was Magic Jammer."  
  
"You're sor--?" Jou began, but was cut off.  
  
"Yuugi!"  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry," Yuugi got up and bowed slightly. "I'll be right back." Running to the back room, he raised his voice a bit. "What is it, Jiisan?"  
  
"Hah!" Anzu crowed the instant Yuugi left. "I knew you'd lose at your own game one of these days."  
  
"What do you mean?" Jou asked innocently.  
  
"That stupid scam of yours! Bet a dragon... and you bet your Baby Dragon, lame-o card extraordinaire... But this time, you lost!"  
  
Jou stuck his tongue out at her. "But its not like I lost much, anyways. Just a Baby Dra--" He stopped. "Ah! I was so stupid! Yuugi probably just bet his Petite Dragon! He told us it was in his deck."  
  
Anzu shot him a strange look. "He discarded it from his hand for Magic Jammer, remember?"  
  
"He... did, didn't he? So what'd he bet? It must have been even worse than..." Jou flipped it over. "Curse of Dragon?? He risked a Curse of Dragon when he could've just risked a Petite Dragon??"  
  
"And look at his hand," Anzu nearly shouted. "Dark Magician, Mirror Force, Dark Hole, and Reborn the Monster!"  
  
"Why didn't he play any of these?" They exchanged astonished looks.  
  
"I... I didn't want you to lose," Yuugi whispered, looking extremely abashed. "I guess I kinda cheated, huh."  
  
"Cheated! Yeah, but you cheated for me." Shaking his head, Jou picked up his Baby Dragon. "Here, you earned this, even when you tipped the scales in my balance." Now that he realized what Yuugi had been doing for him, Jou felt extremely embarrassed to be giving the boy such a pathetic card as that one.  
  
"Baby Dragon," Yuugi read aloud, no hint of disdain in his voice. "I couldn't take it. You keep it. Oh!" Suddenly, his face lit up, and he began digging through his deck again. "I know, take this! If you polymerize it with your Baby Dragon, you can summon Thousand Dragon."  
  
"But... Yuugi... you won! I should be giving you a card, not the opposite way around..."  
  
"No, please take it. As a gift, if you will." When Jou accepted, Yuugi's smile was bright enough to light up the entire room.  
  
~~  
  
Jou and Anzu left at about 5:00 to meet up with Honda, who was at work until 5:30. Yuugi waved happily after them, his smile lingering with them long after they rounded the corner.  
  
Yuugi sat back down, face suddenly somber. He looked at the life point score sheets and booster pack wrappers, reminders of his first friends in a long time. He gathered them in his arms, and, about to walk up the stairs, paused.  
  
He threw it all in the trash can, and continued up to where Sugoroku had said his room would be, eyes darkening with tears. 


	2. Dangerous Dreams

The puzzle was calling again. Even in his sleep, even in his dreams, only one object remained so constant, so focused, so demanding-No matter what he did, the puzzle was never far away from his thoughts, pulling him towards the bundle of rags in which he had stuffed the golden pieces, regardless of the fact that the last thing he wanted to do was put the puzzle together again.  
  
It reminded him of doing the backstroke for the first time.  
  
He remembered his first time in the pool. His father had brought him there, intent on teaching him to swim. So, after the front crawl, Yuugi had readjusted his goggles and swam over to the deep end with his adorably eager father. Then, for the first time ever, he saw the deep end from underwater.  
  
The ground just dropped down underneath him, and with it, went his stomach. All he could think about was what would happen if he dropped down there, away from all light. Would anybody find him in time?  
  
His dad had him lie on his back, submerging his ears completely so water wouldn't get in them. The instant Yuugi did, all sounds vanished.  
  
Kicking slowly, he felt himself move, and suddenly realized that there was one sound: the harsh, jagged sound of his own panicked breathing as he struggled to refrain from thinking about the distance between his back and the floor, and how the only thing holding him up was water-water! Water, what Yuugi drank everything, water, which he could easily have dipped his hand into. He was supposed to trust that to keep him safe?  
  
Engrossed in his thoughts, it came as a shock to him when he hit his head against the edge. Immediately, he leapt up and grasped the comforting edge, unwilling to let go even when his arm went numb. Though sounds flooded back into his ear, children laughing, people splashing, he couldn't forget how he had felt drifting in what seemed like nothing, feeling like he was the last person existing with nothing but his fear to keep him company.  
  
That's how his dreams felt, every night, only on top of his fear, there was a voice, one he knew all too well. "The puzzle," it crooned to him, "Come solve the puzzle..."  
  
Every night, he woke to find himself desperately fitting pieces together.  
  
In horror, he nearly threw the puzzle to the ground, but something wouldn't let him break it again. And Yuugi knew who it was. Instead, he wrapped the puzzle up, trying to hide it from himself. But it was futile. Every night, it took him a little longer to wake up. Every night, he found that a little more of it was solved. If only he could muster the courage to break the accursed puzzle.  
  
But no. This had been happening for... how long was it? Two weeks? Yes, that's right. He had arrived at the Kame game shop about eleven days ago. The first time he had solved the puzzle, it had taken him eight years. No luck this time. It looked as though the puzzle might be finished within the next week.  
  
Not knowing what to do, Yuugi thrust it back in his closet and lay on his bed, shivering silently, knowing that sleep would not come for the rest of the night.  
  
~~  
  
"Yuugi! Yuugi, it was terrible! Anzu beat me! An' she's just a beginner and everything!" Jou moaned in greeting upon storming into the game shop and taking a seat. Anzu came in after him, laughing and teasing. And, following them, was Honda, look clearly saying 'I don't know them.'  
  
Yuugi laughed, but it was half-heartedly, and the smile on his face was fake. He'd have to tell them. Soon. But not now, he begged silently, just let me have friends for a few more minutes...  
  
"Is something wrong, Yuugi?" Anzu asked, looking concerned. "You look like you haven't gotten a decent night's sleep in weeks."  
  
"...Two and a half, actually," Yuugi announced. "I-there's something I have to tell you. I..." Somehow, this was a lot harder with three sets of eyes staring at him than it was practicing in front of his mirror. "I know I should've stopped this before it started, this becoming friends thing of course, but I... I just couldn't... It just felt so wonderful having friends again... I'm sorry, but now it may be too late... I..."  
  
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Yuugi fell silent, looking down.  
  
By now, all three of his friends were looking concerned, but before any of them could voice the general, unanimous opinion that Yuugi needed a couple days of rest and some cough syrup, Yuugi fixed his pained gaze on them. That shut them up.  
  
"I... I've been keeping a secret from you."  
  
He had awoken the previous night to find the puzzled complete except the central piece, the one with the eye on it. (Yuugi noted briefly that this was the piece that he had put in last the first time, too.) Holding the last piece in his hand, inches away from sliding it into the gap, Yuugi found that he was trembling, no, quivering, and covered with sweat. Desperately, he tried to drag his arm away, and when he found that he was frozen, he let the puzzle drop. Obviously, the force trying to make him put the puzzle together wasn't expecting that. The puzzle rolled a bit across the desk, but didn't break, to Yuugi's combined relief and disappointment.  
  
It was obvious that Yuugi would be able to fend off the spirit within the puzzle no longer. It was also obvious that Yuugi needed to confess. Now. Before it happened again. Before... Yuugi shook his head, knowing that thinking about it wouldn't do any good.  
  
"See, it's like this... My secret... might kill you."  
  
~~  
  
Next time: A very long flashback. ("...And... I didn't know what to do... everybody would just die because of me. Then, I thought, what if I... killed myself first?") 


	3. Mnemonic

Author's Note: In response to shitsumon's review, I realize that I didn't make the divorce too clear. So more is explained in this chapter. In fact, a lot is explained in this chapter.  
  
But. It. Is. Disturbing.  
  
Don't say I didn't warn you. Dark! Dark! Dark!  
  
~~  
  
"I... I was living with my father at the time," Yuugi began finally. "My mother had divorced him when she found herself pregnant, as she was a bit too young, and her parents were... livid. Umm... about... eight years ago, my father bought me a... a puzzle. It was really pretty, so I got to work on it... I finished it about a month ago... it was a pyramid. And then..." Yuugi's voice dropped to a harsh whisper. "Something came out of it.  
  
"I hadn't realized at first what it was. It was... well, it looked like me, but I think that's just because I solved the puzzle. I said 'Hi' to it, still somewhat shocked that there was another person in my bedroom. He looked at me strangely. Then, suddenly, he _grinned_." For some reason, Yuugi shuddered at this. "His grin was terrible, like... like the hounds of the underworld. And then he disappeared.  
  
"I thought that maybe I had just imagined it. Who knows? It was a warm day, perhaps I was having hallucinations. I went down to the basement, where it was cooler, turned on the radio, and forgot about him.  
  
"Until..."  
  
The way he spoke before had been casual, but now the ease with which he had described the beginning suddenly fell away, leaving nothing but a worn kid with circles under his eyes. "Until..." he tried again, but his voice seemed to leave him. He licked his lips, then sat down.  
  
"I woke up early the next morning to find blood splattered all over my clothes and hands. I hadn't even bothered to change into my pajamas the night before, it seemed. Horrified, I jumped up to take a shower, and realized that I was _wearing the puzzle_. It was resting against my chest, tied around my throat with some sort of material that I couldn't even recognize, much less get my hands on.  
  
"I... practically threw myself into the shower, and washed until all the blood had gone down the drain. I put on new clothes, threw the old ones out. And as I walked out of the bathroom, I could hear that in the basement, the radio was still on."  
  
Anzu stepped forward as Yuugi began crying, but he put out a hand to stop her. "I..." His voice was thick with tears. "What had I been doing... that afternoon? I didn't know then... I couldn't remember a thing. But the radio was still on. I had blacked out, and when I woke, it was morning, with blood all over me.  
  
"I wanted to turn off the radio, so I went down the stairs. The cold wrapped around me like... like a death shroud. And when I got to the bottom of the stairs, I took one look, and fainted."  
  
By now, all three listeners had to lean in to even hear anything. "My... best friend of four years, Ryou Bakura... he was... Well, he was dead, of course. But it looked like he must've been hurt really bad while he died... blood was splattered all over the walls... an arm was cut off... and his stomach was..." Yuugi drew in breath, obviously trying to fight off nausea.  
  
Then, Yuugi made an indistinguishable noise. He repeated it, and the others realized that he was saying "when".  
  
"When... I woke up again... It was later in the morning... I was in my room again. There was no blood on me, and I thought I must've been dreaming. But I was still in the clothes I'd put on before I found... I mean, after the shower. And the puzzle had _moved_. Not much, of course, I could've blamed it on gravity. I had put it on my nightstand, and now it was on my pillow. Maybe it could've fallen there? But no... in my _dream_ I had put it on my nightstand, so either way, it had to have been... real...  
  
"I didn't know what to tell my dad. I couldn't exactly go up to him and say... and say, 'Hey dad, could you please move my friend's... mutilated... corpse out of the basement?' So I got up, went downstairs, and poured myself some orange juice, though the last thing I wanted to do was drink it.  
  
"'Hey dad,' I said, casually, 'I think I left the radio on in the basement. Do you think you could turn it off for me? I'm a bit late for school.' When he agreed and left, I quickly poured my orange juice down the drain, washed the cup, and sat back down, waiting anxiously for my dad to come back up and announce that my best friend was in the basement, bleeding all over the carpet.  
  
"But all he said was, 'Turned it off. You'd better hurry, you only have three minutes to get to school!'  
  
"I... couldn't believe it. But what choice did I have? I grabbed my backpack and ran out. Maybe it was just a dream, I tried to convince myself. But... that didn't work too well. Ryou, always prompt, was tardy that day. In fact, he never showed up at all. I went home torn between vomiting and crying.  
  
"I went back into the basement. The walls were spotless. A coffee table that I'd never seen before in my life had been dragged over the place where Ryou's body was. I was too scared to look under it. There was a note on the table with five dollars. My dad was thanking me for cleaning the basement... He said he didn't know when I'd done it, but I'd certainly done a great job. The walls were spotless."  
  
Yuugi began crying again, just as how he had cried in the past when he'd found that note. The piece of paper, white as bone, more than anything else, proved that the dream wasn't really a dream, that his best friend had probably been killed in his own basement.  
  
"It... got... worse..."  
  
By now, everybody had found chairs, as their legs were suddenly unstable. Their faces were crossed between disbelief and absolute horror. It was easier to pretend that Yuugi was lying, but why would Yuugi lie about something like that?  
  
"I couldn't sleep at all that night. I watched the red numbers on my clock move forwards, and to my tired mind, they blurred, and looked like blood. Hiding my eyes, I don't know how long I was there, sweating and trying not to remember how Ryou's pretty white hair had looked, stained with... blood.  
  
"I suppose I did get to sleep that night, but it was fitful. I woke at two in the morning, and I couldn't look in the mirror for fear that I would be covered in blood again. I forced myself to look eventually, and I was all clean, except for the sweat that was dripping from my temples.  
  
"Relieved, I went to take a shower. It was... warm... and I began to relax... And then, I woke up."  
  
More tears leaked out, even through Yuugi's closed eyelids and the fingers covering them.  
  
"I knew immediately that something was wrong. I hadn't remembered the end of my shower, or getting back in bed. I really didn't want to go into the bathroom, but I had to, didn't I?  
  
"It looked okay at first, but then... I realized that the... shower curtain... was... drawn shut. I... pulled it open...  
  
"Miho was... still alive... Our eyes met, sharing looks of terror. Or at least, they would've, but... Miho had been blinded. 'What happened?' I asked.  
  
"She told me... she said, 'It was Yuugi! He... called me, told me it was an emergency, that I had to come over. He said he was in the bathroom, he said he was hurt, but when I got in, he looked... demonic. I thought his eyes looked red. And he... he hurt me. I think he broke all my limbs, because I can't move them... Please, help me!'  
  
"I didn't have the heart to tell her that I _was_ Yuugi. I just told her to go to sleep, that everything would be okay in the morning. Everything wasn't, of course, but at least she wouldn't die panicked. I left her there, knowing that whatever had moved Ryou would mover her too, and she would be dumped somewhere nobody would think to look.  
  
"There was no doubt she was telling the truth. It wasn't that hard to figure out-I was killing my friends off. I returned to my room, ready to have a nervous breakdown. Then I realized that the puzzle was around my neck again.  
  
"In my mind, I could remember how the not-me looked, coming out of the puzzle as I finished it. He... had red eyes. After that it was just a matter of putting the pieces together to solve the mystery.  
  
"Every night after that, I found another of my friends dead. After I'd found the last one, Ryuuji, I had already figured this out-the demon in the puzzle was taking over me while I couldn't defend, either sleeping or unconscious. While he had control over my body, he would kill all my friends.  
  
"And my father was next."  
  
Yuugi had been speaking in a deadened voice up to this point, which was how he had managed to tell of all this without long, despairing drags of breath. But now, his voice broke again. "...And... I didn't know what to do... everybody would just die because of me. Then, I thought, what if I... killed myself first?  
  
"So I brought a knife to my neck and cut, easy as that. Blood flowed out freely, fair retribution for what I'd been doing. But the puzzle-demon would have none of that, though. I was his vessel, and without me, I suppose he couldn't have destroyed so many lives. So he found me, dying, and healed me. That's why I wear this... collar around my neck... at all times. I didn't want anybody to see the scar.  
  
"The next morning, I woke as early as possible, just after midnight. Sure enough, my dad was in his bedroom, bleeding slowly to death. He hadn't seen who had. stabbed him, he said. I called 911, but it was too late... he had... four days to... live. He gave me a photo of jiisan, and made arrangements for me to live there. I'm not sure how, but he coerced my mom into bringing me here, and... well, here I am.  
  
"I broke it the day I found him lying there, the puzzle, I mean. But every night, it... calls to me, and though it's been broken, it seemed to have... made a connection... now it's almost done... there's only one piece left...  
  
"I don't know how I can stop the puzzle-demon from killing you all. But please, stay away from me. I'm... I'm sorry I got you all into this mess... If I knew how to get you back out of it, I swear I would..."  
  
Only now did Yuugi look up, feeling unpleasantly scrutinized, as if his friends had somehow turned into judges overnight.  
  
~~  
  
Next time: Anzu, Jou, and Honda's reactions. Face off with the 'puzzle- demon'. 


	4. Shattering Truths Pt 1

"Yuugi," Anzu began, slowly, calmly, "We're your friends, you know that. We want to believe you, but you have to admit, this is... shocking." Here, she paused, grasping for something else to say.  
  
"You don't believe me," Yuugi said flatly, looking saddened and lost. "You don't need to tell me, I can see it in your eyes."  
  
"Aw, c'mon, Yuugi! I believe you! You wouldn't lie to us," Jou protested, reaching over to pat Yuugi on the shoulder. "We'll figure this out together."  
  
Desperately, Yuugi shook the hand off. "No, no! You still don't believe me. You think I'm delusional or... or something..."  
  
"I believe you." Honda didn't seem to care that his blond friend had said the exact same thing seconds ago. "I saw the articles in the newspaper. You used to live in Tokyo, then, isn't that right?" Yuugi looked like he wanted to hug Honda, but settled for nodding. "Yeah. I thought so. But just because I believe you doesn't mean that I'm going to help you."  
  
At the same time, Yuugi asked, "But how could you have read the Tokyo newspaper?"  
  
Honda's eyes darkened. "I knew Miho."  
  
"You... did...?"  
  
"Met her at work. We dated about a year. When she moved, we kept in touch. We'd been writing letters for about two years... Apparently, when her mother saw my letter in the mailbox, addressed to Miho, she burst into tears. She sent me back the newspaper clipping."  
  
"Oh. I'm... I'm sorry..."  
  
Honda shot him an indiscernible look. "Yeah. Well, considering how you killed her, I suppose you should be." The chair he had been sitting on clattered, and then he was gone. A few moments later, the front door slammed. Again, the bell jingled merrily.  
  
Yuugi blinked stupidly after him a few moments, while the three sat in silence. Then he, too, got up, licking dry lips. Pausing on his way to the stairs, he turned to Anzu and Jou. "That turned out well, didn't it? Well, just stay away from me from now on. Especially if somebody turns up missing."  
  
"Wait! Yuugi!" When deadened violet eyes met Jou's gaze, Jou gulped. "I... I don't think you should stay here by yourself, Yuugi. I know it looks like we don't believe you, and it is kinda hard to believe, but maybe you are telling the truth. If that's so, if you try to solve the puzzle in the dead of night, we could stop you..."  
  
"But Jou... then you'll just get killed first..."  
  
"Don't you think I can handle a piece of jewelry?"  
  
"It's not just a piece of jewelry, Jou," Yuugi admonished, laughing slightly. "If it can control my body, who knows what else it can do?"  
  
"Yeah, but if we're there, we can hold you back, and you won't even be able to solve it in the first place."  
  
"But... I don't want you to get hurt..."  
  
"We'll be careful! If we can't hold you off, we'll run. Isn't that right, Anzu?"  
  
Anzu didn't miss a beat. "Of course! There's no reason why we shouldn't stick together... hey! Jou, stop speaking for me!"  
  
~~  
  
It was hard sleeping that night. Anzu lay in her bag, staring up at the ceiling in Yuugi's room. It was dark, but for the blinking lights of the large digital clock by Yuugi's head, and the penguin nightlight by the door, which Anzu had declared adorable upon sight. Her entire body was tense, wondering if Yuugi was asleep or not.  
  
The sweat pooled on the bridge of Anzu's nose, and she quickly wiped it off, and then wiped her forehead. She was afraid to even move. Scolding herself for being so ridiculous, she glanced towards Yuugi, and caught sight of the clock.  
  
Nearing midnight.  
  
Of course, the time has no matter to a demon, right? The thought wasn't so convincing when she thought of all the horror stories she'd ever read.  
  
Yuugi caught her gaze. "I'm scared," he whispered. Jou was sleeping between Yuugi's bed and the desk, the foot of his sleeping bag effectively blocking the closet in which the puzzle was stowed. Neither knew if he was awake or not, so Anzu also replied in a whisper.  
  
"So am I."  
  
"Then we can be scared together," Yuugi decided with a smile. By only the pale, blue light of the penguin and the red light of the clock, the smile looked... creepy. But Yuugi shifted back a bit, and the moment passed.  
  
Relaxing, Anzu closed her eyes. Just as she was about to fall asleep, a loud noise interrupted her. Biting back a scream, Anzu grabbed the baseball bat she had stolen from Jou and jumped up... and saw nothing. She looked around confusedly for a moment before her eyes fell just over the corner of Yuugi's bed. Jou was snoring.  
  
Anzu sighed and sat back down. Now she'd _never_ get to sleep.  
  
Somehow, Anzu did fall asleep. She dreamt of penguins bathed in blood.  
  
~~  
  
When she woke, Yuugi was struggling with Jou on the bed. Yuugi eyes were closed, and Jou wasn't having much trouble, using his knees to pin Yuugi's and his hands to pin Yuugi's arms down. But how could he hold Yuugi there all night?  
  
Suddenly, Yuugi let out a low moan. His eyes snapped open, flaring an intense red that had no comparison. And he grinned.  
  
~~  
  
Yuugi was floating again.  
  
Where is everybody? The question didn't come out of his mouth, though. It merely ran through his head and disappeared, making room for the whispers.  
  
'Solve the puzzle.'  
  
No, he tried to say, I don't want to.  
  
'Solve the puzzle.'  
  
He tried to get up, but his legs sank. With the unpleasant idea that if he sank, he would drown, he got back down.  
  
'Solve the puzzle.'  
  
No, no, no, no, no-  
  
'Solve the puzzle.'  
  
The whispers were getting harsher now.  
  
'Solve it! Solve it!'  
  
No, I-  
  
'SOLVE THE PUZZLE!'  
  
I can't, I'll-  
  
'THE PUZZLE! SOLVE! NOW!'  
  
But...  
  
'SOLVE IT!'  
  
This was-  
  
'PUZZLE!'  
  
--Insane! Why-  
  
'SOLVE!'  
  
--Were the voices yelling-  
  
'PUT IT TOGETHER!'  
  
--At him? They'd never-  
  
'NOW!'  
  
--Done that before. It must be urgent.  
  
'Yes, it is,' the voice said, calming. 'Very urgent. Please solve the puzzle...' But I can't... It'll hurt my friends...  
  
~~  
  
The door to Yuugi's room slammed open. At the noise, Jou looked up. There, with the light streaming in from behind him, stood Honda, in an incredibly dramatic pose. Distracted, Jou didn't realize until it was too late that Yuugi had flung him away, and was now grabbing for the closet.  
  
Honda dove after Yuugi, pushing him away from the closet, and pinned the poor boy down with bony knees. "This is for Miho!" He yelled, and whacked Yuugi over the head, clearly intending to knock the boy out and be done with it, at least for the night.  
  
Yuugi retained consciousness, however, and _glared_ at Honda. Caught by the force of that terrible glare, Honda froze. Yuugi launched himself at Honda's chest, and both were lost to a mound of flailing limbs and sharp teeth. As the fight tamed slightly, Honda seemed to be winning, trying to pin Yuugi down.  
  
Then he paused.  
  
The closet door burst open, sending Jou's sleeping bag flying. Out of it, the puzzle flew, chain dangling. It circled Yuugi's head slowly. The last puzzle piece came with it, and Yuugi tried to grab for them, the red light in his eyes fading and growing at irregular intervals. Always, though, he jerked back his hand as if he'd been stung. His movements grew stiff, as if he were fighting internally.  
  
Jou knocked it out of the air with a hand.  
  
Honda suddenly started moving again, a machine that was abruptly plugged in. But instead of doing something to contain Yuugi, he reached for the puzzle and flung it at Yuugi.  
  
"HONDA, WHAT ARE YOU DOING???"  
  
But it was too late. Yuugi looked at the puzzle like his birthday had come early, and slipped the last piece in.  
  
~~  
  
Click.  
  
~~  
  
The puzzle bathed Yuugi in a brilliant white light, but he didn't seemed like he was going to put it on. One hand hovered over the puzzle, as if deciding whether or not to take it apart. With an inhuman cry, Honda leapt over and threw the loop around Yuugi's neck.  
  
Convulsing, Yuugi collapsed, hands drawing near to the puzzle but pulling back abruptly. Then, he was still.  
  
Jou looked ready to kill Honda, while Anzu just looked horrified. She put out a hand to perhaps tap Yuugi on the shoulder, but before she could, Yuugi looked up. His eyes were dull, and he didn't seem to be _in there_, but he shook his head. The motion shifted the puzzle around his neck, and suddenly, the life came back into his eyes. They were violet.  
  
At the same time, something solidified beside him. A person? Yes, it was a person. 'It looked like me,' Yuugi had said, but none of Yuugi's friends could see much of a resemblance. Sure, they both had the same hairstyle, but what did that mean? This newcomer's face was stern and his eyes... red...  
  
Yuugi watched with a slightly stunned expression on his face as Jou attacked, apparently grabbing for the spirit's throat. His fingers passed right through. The Yuugi-look-alike stepped back a bit, and sat down on the bed. Jou didn't adjust so well to the fact that his momentum had just pushed him _through_ the puzzle demon, and found himself falling after said demon, arms flailing wildly.  
  
A hand closed around his upper arm. Wild-eyed, Jou stared at the hand belonging to the demon he'd passed through moments ago, only tearing his eyes away a split second before he was once again thrown into the wall with a sickening crunch.  
  
And then the demon, more solid than they thought, dove for Honda, teeth bared in a snarl.  
  
Anzu had finally worked up the nerve to approach the demon with Jou's baseball bat, and Jou was just getting up from his spot by the wall when a wail pierced through the night. The demon stopped what he was doing, and, leaving a bloody Honda to fall gratefully to the floor, darted back to the bed, where Yuugi was curled up, sobbing.  
  
"I won't let you hurt him," Anzu snarled, and, since she'd already worked up the courage before, it was simple from there to bring the bat down upon the demon's head.  
  
The demon glared.  
  
The baseball bat caught on fire, and Anzu shrieked, trying not to let the fire touch either her hands or Yuugi's room, and finally ran out, trying to find a sink.  
  
Helpless, Jou could only watch dimly, fighting off the unconsciousness that threatened to overtake him, as the demon crept closer to the crying Yuugi. Closer... (What do I do he'll get Yuugi) closer... (I have to stop him can't let him get Yuugi) closer... (I'm sorry Yuugi I should've stopped him) And then, the demon was right next to the boy, and he-  
  
Put an arm around Yuugi.  
  
Anzu had run back just in time to witness it, dripping baseball bat in hand. Four pairs of eyes widened as the demon enveloped Yuugi in a tight hug, nuzzling the boy from sheer affection. A pin could've dropped on the carpet of Yuugi's bedroom, and they all would've heard it. The only sound was that of the demon purring as he slowly relaxed his grip around Yuugi.  
  
Nobody really knew how long they sat there, except when the digits on the clock suddenly changed from 12:59 to 1:00, and Yuugi's friends suddenly unfroze. Jou made as if to approach and instantly found a pair of demonic red eyes glaring at him. Raising his hands in a rather defensive gesture, Jou backed up again.  
  
~~  
  
Author's Note: I'm sorry, but I'm going to be going away. I'll barely be at my computer for the next four weeks, and I apologize for the gigantic cliffhanger I've left you with. But it was better than just leaving you with the previous chapter, right?  
  
Domo Arigatou to Zoo-san for fixing a part and inspiring me to finish this chapter. 


	5. Shattering Truths Pt 2

The seconds inched by with painful slowness.  
  
Yuugi remained hunched over, eyes squeezed painfully shut, not daring to believe it when nothing sharp dug into his flesh. In fact, instead of mauling him, somebody was _embracing_ him. Finally, he dared to ease one eyelid open, gazing up with fear.  
  
No. Way.  
  
The demon was the one holding him so gently?  
  
"You..." Yuugi paused, gulped. "You're not going to kill me?"  
  
Seeing a face that hadn't smiled in perhaps centuries was wrong, somehow, but the way the demon's eyes smiled with his lips somehow made it... right. Yuugi found himself relaxing. "No. Never. I am here to protect you."  
  
At these words, Yuugi started to smile back, but something stirred at the corner of his vision. The others. They looked horrified. He stiffened again. "But you killed my friends!"  
  
Crimson eyes narrowed at this accusation. "I am here to protect you," the demon repeated.  
  
"But they were my friends!" By now, Yuugi had put his hands on the demon's shoulders, and was twisted around so he could look said demon in the face. "How could you kill them? What have they ever done to deserve... to deserve... death?"  
  
"Don't you remember? They would have betrayed you if you continued to trust in them."  
  
Yuugi shook his head wordlessly, his eyes clearly stating his disbelief. Then, "how?" Confused, he crafted a defense with the first of the long list of deaths on his conscience. "Ryou would never betray me!"  
  
"Ryou would not have protected you either. He merely stood aside when you were being hurt."  
  
"No..." A mere whisper was all the defense Ryou got as the demon rather forcefully reawakened some of Yuugi's memories. Dazed, Yuugi watched them, then shook his head just as forcefully. "No! He was afraid! What could he have done, anyways? There were too many of them, they were too big..."  
  
"So he just watched calmly."  
  
"He wasn't calm! He was... he was panicking! He tried to help me, he did, but he was... haven't you ever been afraid? It freezes you, so even if you wanted to help, you couldn't. He didn't run, did he? If he had run, he wouldn't have gotten hurt at all, but he stayed with me!"  
  
"He should have helped you."  
  
"He couldn't! We all have our strengths and weaknesses." It didn't make sense. None of it made sense. A demon, from his puzzle, killing everybody he loved, then declaring that it was to _protect_ him. And now he was pleading with the demon, to what avail? If the demon admitted to be wrong in killing Ryou, would that bring him back from the dead?  
  
"Yes, we do. And his was that he was a bad friend."  
  
"But even if he was a bad friend, what gives you the right to kill him?" Honda asked, and Yuugi shot him a grateful look.  
  
The demon swiveled until his gaze rested on Honda, and continued speaking calmly to Yuugi, as if Honda's words had been nothing but sound, meaningless and primitive. "And this one attacked you."  
  
"No!" Three voices yelled at once. Yuugi latched on to the demon's arms, shaking his head and trying not to cry. "He never meant to hurt me, he just didn't want you to possess me, please don't..."  
  
Jou and Anzu had both jumped forward as well, though Jou had to put a hand out to steady himself and another to his temple to try to ease his headache. Disorientated and dizzy at the sudden motion, Jou sank back down with a moan, nursing his head in his arms and putting a finger to the back of his head, where sweat mixed with the blood that flowed sluggishly from who-knew-where. Anzu brandished the baseball bat again, but remembering her previous experience, dropped it, and prepared to use her fists if necessary. She stepped in front of Honda protectively.  
  
Frozen until now from the demon's words, Honda finally appeared to notice that Anzu's legs were suddenly in front of his face. "Get down, fool!" he hissed, wrapping his arms against lightly tanned legs and pulling Anzu down, ignoring the bloody gash running down his bicep. "If it's me he wants, let him have me! There's no use in getting you hurt, too!"  
  
Ignoring all this, the demon stood, brushing Yuugi off.  
  
"Please! You said you were here to protect me! You said it twice! But this isn't protection, this is... this is murder!" Desperate, Yuugi began yelling the first things that came to his lips. "You can't kill him! You can't! If being safe comes at the cost of others' lives, I'd rather you kill me now!"  
  
That got the demon's attention. "Really." He stalked back towards Yuugi. "You mean to say that you want me to kill you and free myself of the duty of protecting you." Hesitantly, Yuugi nodded, and the demon pretending to think over it for a while. "Hmm... no. If you die, I'd imagine that I would die to. Besides," the demon leaned his face close to Yuugi's, smiling lazily. "I like you." The "you" was pronounced "yieu," like the word for "sugar" in some European language. He stretched out the "i" in like as if toying with a favorite food, trying to make the taste linger in his mouth as long as possible. Yuugi's eyes widened, and combined with the childish way this murderous demon had just spoken, it might have been comical in any other situation. "Besides, I don't like this one much, anyways." He jerked his head towards Honda. "I would've killed him even if he hadn't hurt you."  
  
In another situation, the comedy level would've increased with Yuugi's gaping mouth, but the immeasurable amount of helplessness and despair in his eyes would've reduced the general humor of the situation. Anyone laughing would be accused of heartlessness, and several crimes including the murdering of babies straight from the cradle.  
  
Yuugi wondered if the demon would've had qualms about doing just that.  
  
~~  
  
Note: About time I got this up, isn't it? I'm really, really, really sorry that this took so long! As I said, I was away at camp, and I had (and still have) a really bad case of writer's block. I _still_ don't know what's going to happen next. Any suggestions?  
  
~~  
  
Ryasha: Nice to know I can do that to people. Thank chibizoo for your brain freeze. 'Twas her idea, if I remember correctly.  
  
Shitsumon: Wow. You actually submit reviews with valid criticism! I love you! Sorry I've been neglecting to answer your reviews, this is mostly a result of bad short term memory. Let's see. he was yelling at Yuugi probably because he was desperate to get out before Honda killed Yuugi. Hm, I don't think I ever said that Yuugi's mother physically abused him. Just verbally. ^-^ Er, I suppose his friends entered his house at night, and nobody knew where they went? Nope, no Ryou. (*laughs evilly with the knowledge that she's just eliminated Yuugi's major competition in the cute department*)  
  
Kopy-Kat14: *blinks* I didn't find anything in the email and it's been. a month. And I didn't get the next chapter of Wired yet, in case you mailed it to me. Ooh! Yaoi! *happy*  
  
Thanks to everybody who reviewed. just because I didn't mention you doesn't mean I don't appreciate your reviews. *ego puffs* 


	6. Accept

"You can't!"  
  
"Oh?"  
  
Furiously, Yuugi shook his head. "You can't... you can't just kill people because you don't like them!"  
  
"Why not?" The look the demon gave him was pure innocence.  
  
"Why would you?"  
  
"I don't like him, I believe that he would harm me if left alive, so I will not leave him alive to harm me."  
  
"But... but you can't just assume that he's going to hurt you! Death is final. You can't change your mind... ever..."  
  
"Not that I'd want to. Ever. And besides, Honda, I believe his name was, did try to hurt me. It's only fair that I be allowed to kill him before he can kill me."  
  
"But... how would you feel if I killed you just because I assumed that you'd kill me?"  
  
"You couldn't kill me." The answer was accompanied by a smug look.  
  
"Fine then. Somebody who could."  
  
"Then it would be fair. Survival of the fittest. If someone is stronger than I am, and they choose to kill me, what could I do about it?"  
  
"Wouldn't you at least be upset??"  
  
"A little, but that's just the way it works."  
  
Meanwhile, Anzu, Jou, and Honda made their grand escape. That is to say, they tried to get out of the room. Jou stood dizzily, taking a few trembling steps, but couldn't keep his balance, and was finally resigned to crawling in a poor imitation of a straight line. Anzu helped Honda stand, but the instant weight was applied to his left leg, he yelled and clung to Anzu in order to keep from falling to the ground in an undignified heap.  
  
"Sit," the demon commanded, waving them down. "I'm not done with you yet."  
  
They sat.  
  
Though Yuugi had kept his voice calm and his words bland throughout the entire conversation in mimic of the demon sitting beside him, it wasn't very easy to forget just what was at stake here. And the demon had an _infuriating_ sense of logic that defied every argument Yuugi threw at him with the ease of a raincoat repelling water.  
  
And now, the demon stood.  
  
"Wait!" What could Yuugi say to convince this demon to refrain from killing everybody in sight? What could convince the demon of anything? "You... How can you protect me if you keep on hurting me?"  
  
The demon paused mid-stride and turned around. "I hurt you?"  
  
"Not physically, no. But when my friends die, especially if it's because of me, it... hurts. It hurts me more than any bodily wound ever could."  
  
"Hn..."  
  
Was that all? Was the demon only going to say 'hn,' and then continue? "So please?" Yuugi bit his lip. "For me, would you stop killing people?"  
  
"Hn." Again with the 'hn'! What did it mean? Yes? No? Maybe so? Yuugi could hardly breathe with the anticipation.  
  
"For you... I will."  
  
~~  
  
Jou and Honda were bandaged, Sugoroku was checked upon and reassured that the noises were harmless, and they all (minus Sugoroku, who'd thankfully gone back to sleep) congregated back in Yuugi's room. An uncertain silence settled as everybody looked expectantly at the demon, who compensated by looking expectantly back at each of them.  
  
"So, er, what now?" Anzu asked finally, breaking the silence.  
  
"What now?" the demon echoed quizzically, settling his gaze on her. "What do you mean, what now?"  
  
"Are you leaving now, or what?" Honda, ever subtle, burst in.  
  
"Leaving--?"  
  
"Are you going back into the puzzle?" Yuugi amended helpfully.  
  
"Oh. I see." Resting his chin on his interwoven fingers and his elbows on the windowsill, the demon looked out at the neighborhood through his reflection, successfully avoiding looking at the others. "But I cannot go back into the puzzle; it will no longer hold me. When Yuugi solved it, he released me and gave me both substance and home... in himself."  
  
"You mean... you live _in_ me?"  
  
"Don't sound so pleased," the demon remarked dryly at Yuugi's horrified tone, never once removing his gaze from the window. "You'll boost my ego."  
  
"G... gomen..." Nobody had to look to see his blush.  
  
"Hn."  
  
"So, I suppose you'll be here forever, then?" Yuugi asked, recovering quickly from the admonishment.  
  
"You know what I wish?" The demon seemed to do that a lot, the ignoring of comments that he didn't like. "I wish that you would stop seeing me as an obstacle and start seeing me as a person. I may not be human, and I may not have the same kind of morals as you, but that doesn't mean that I don't notice that all you really want is to be rid of me." Finally, he turned around, fixing his gaze upon Yuugi. His eyes were hard, as always, but there was something behind them that hinted at sorrow. "I _am_ your guardian, after all."  
  
"Well, you did try to kill me," Honda muttered.  
  
"And you tried to kill me too. What's the problem?"  
  
"That's 'cause you killed all of Yuugi's other friends!"  
  
"I didn't think they were good for Yuugi."  
  
"And you have the right to decide that because...?"  
  
"I am his guardian."  
  
"Did he want a guardian in the first place?" Jou, quick to defend a friend, jumped into the argument.  
  
"Actually, yes. If he didn't need a guardian, and if he didn't deserve a guardian, there's no way he could've solved my puzzle."  
  
"Yeah, but did he want _you_?"  
  
Wearily, Yuugi waved a hand between the three arguing. "You guys, please..." He trailed off. Please what? Please stop arguing, even though that's just what I would've done? Please make the demon feel at home, though he creeps me out and I want him to leave? And instantly, he felt guilty for that thought. How could it feel to know that the one you were supposed to be protecting didn't want you?  
  
And how could Yuugi make it right again?  
  
"Anou..." Everybody quieted down to listen to Yuugi. "What's your name?"  
  
~~  
  
Yami no Katya: Nooo! You changed your name! Funny angst... interesting. ^.~  
  
Master Elora Dannan: Yes, whacking people is the best way to revive them, of course.  
  
Shitsumon: Ah, the Tristan thing was just random. (Evil laughing here.) And no Mokuba, this is the last real chapter, next is an epilogue. *runs off to buy index cards*  
  
~~  
  
And... next chapter concludes it all! (I hope.)  
  
Thanks for your support, and thanks for taking the time to read this. *hugs everybody* 


	7. Epilogue

Shitsumon: Yeah... talented... there ya go... ^^;; *nervous laughter* And Anzu is talented too: she managed to avoid getting burned! Whoo!  
  
Yami no Katya: Okay, okay, I see your point. Hmf.  
  
Thanks for everybody's support! ^_^  
  
Onwards!  
  
~~  
  
"K... Konnichi wa, Bakura-san."  
  
"Yuugi!" The elder Bakura smiled, pulling the door wide open. "This is a surprise. I haven't seen you since..." Here, he paused, considering.  
  
"Since the memorial?" Yuugi supplied helpfully.  
  
"...Yeah." The smile was gone now, replaced by weary sadness. "Yeah, since the memorial. Kami-sama, I can't believe I've lost them all. First my wife... then Amane... and now Ryou too..."  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
"Well, it's not your fault."  
  
Yuugi blanched at this, and suddenly found the railing on the stairway quite interesting. It was a dark mahogany color, starting a few feet from the doorway and slanting up. Some of it was blocked out by the top of the doorframe, but Yuugi could still see carpeted steps. He began counting the steps silently, trying not to burst into tears or audible self-reproval.  
  
"...I'm glad you were such a good friend to Ryou," Bakura was saying, patting Yuugi on the shoulder.  
  
Twenty-two... twenty-three...  
  
Desperately, Yuugi glanced around, trying to change the subject. "Oh, you have a cat." It was a stupid thing to say, especially since Yuugi had been to the Bakura residence several times, and had seen the cat during each visit. "I, I mean, she must be good company, now that... I mean..." Did everything revolve around Ryou's death here? Is that why the topic just wouldn't go away? Luckily, Bakura took the hint, though he seemed to be having trouble keeping the normally relaxed look on his face.  
  
"Yeah, you've met Ashita, right?"  
  
"Not exactly. I've seen her. Ashita's her name?"  
  
"Yeah... Amane named her."  
  
"So, you've had her for a long time?" The only response was a nod. Some part of Yuugi cried at that, really not wanting to say what he'd come here to say. Buy time. How to buy time... "Why Ashita?"  
  
"Amane always said that tomorrow was a new day, that we needed to have hope that tomorrow would be better." Wistfully, Bakura smiled, and then seemed to notice something. "Oh, I'm sorry for being rude. Please, come in."  
  
"N-no, that's okay. I just wanted to tell you something..."  
  
"Oh?"  
  
"Yeah..." It was now or never, Yuugi supposed, heartbeat quickening. Ashita ran a few steps and jumped on the railing. She tipped slightly, tail lashing out, before her claws clicked on the wood, firmly securing her grasp. "I know where... I mean, if you wanted to have a... proper funeral and everything because you really couldn't before... I mean..."  
  
"Yuugi, what is it?" At the word funeral, Bakura's face had gone stern. Now, even his words were stern, the effect augmented by the contrast from his normally easygoing nature.  
  
"I... I know where his body is..."  
  
~~  
  
Funerals were depressing business, but Yuugi went to all of them, and Sugoroku felt it his duty to accompany his grandson, only dissuaded by Yuugi himself. This sudden discovery of Yuugi's friends' bodies caused their respective parents to have sudden breakdowns, and then each of them decided that a funeral was in order.  
  
Ryou's second funeral was a tiresome affair, and actually the last of all of them. Feeling melancholy after watching so many of his friends buried, Yuugi couldn't help but just want to go back to the hotel room and sleep. Seeing all those starched ties and solemn faces, knowing that half the people there didn't even know Ryou made Yuugi want to cry yet again, but he sat through the ceremonies and watched as the dirt hit coffin again and again and again.  
  
It was a closed casket ceremony, of course. Nobody wanted to see the gaping, infected holes that littered Ryou's skinny frame.  
  
Yuugi was the second last to leave. He stood quietly by the grave, and finally placed a small yellow flower on top of the rest of the flowers, muttering a few words of goodbye. Soon, most of the flowers would wilt, and the petals would fall off. But today at least, all the flowers were vibrant and fresh.  
  
Ryou had always liked flowers.  
  
~~  
  
Yuugi's original plan was to stay in their old house for the duration of all the funerals, but as soon as he took a step into it, he knew it wouldn't work. Slightly nauseous, he hurried back out, and Sugoroku, always understanding, had rented a hotel room.  
  
On the way back to the hotel, Yuugi stopped at another cemetery.  
  
At each funeral, Yuugi felt like he was leaving a part of himself behind. He knew that he would never be able to come back to Tokyo, as surely as he knew that he would never be able to set foot in the house he used to share with his dad.  
  
And speaking of his dad, Yuugi's otousan was the only one he'd really known in this city that hadn't been laid to rest within the past week. Yuugi had gone to the funeral the day before he left for Domino, and yet he had never known what had happened, never understood why his father was suddenly gone, and never was able to let it go.  
  
But he felt that if he just had one last chance to talk to his father before he left the city, it would all be okay...  
  
He started to push open the little black gate, but stopped. There was somebody else already standing over the grave. She was talking quickly but quietly, occasionally making animated gestures with her arms and head. Finally, she paused and brushed her strawberry blonde hair back with a finger. How many times had he seen that motion? Plenty enough to figure out who she was, even by just looking at the back of her head.  
  
Quietly, he eased the gate shut again. Yuugi could always return another day. There was no way he was going to disturb this moment. Not when his parents were finally making peace with each other.  
  
~Owari~ 


	8. Note

Aww. Gomen, you guys. I guess I really didn't explain it well.  
  
Well see, what happens is as follows: The first time, everybody died, and Yami conveniently disposed of the bodies, and so they have this memorial service and stuff for the dead people... but now, since Yugi talked to Yami and stuff, he can find the bodies, yes? So he feels it's only right that he tells the family of those who died and let them have a proper funeral, bodies and all. Oh, and with his father, Yuugi wants to visit his father's grave, but his mother is already there. Remember how Yuugi's mother abandoned him with his dad after birth? Well, besides the time when his dad coerced his mother to bring Yuugi to the game shop, they haven't spoken since. But now his mother is at his father's grave, and forgive me if you have different beliefs, but his mother is talking to his father, even though his father is dead. Because... she's sorry... and she's apologizing.  
  
Urk, I suppose the epilogue was a bad idea. Gomen ne.  
  
Another note: Yuugi lived in Tokyo before the story, and the story starts out with his moving to Domino. 


End file.
